02 May 2012 Silver Spring, United States [Ansel Oliver/ANN and Miroslav Pujic/tedNEWS] Top regional Seventh-day Adventist Church leaders identified 24 cities that will receive targeted outreach efforts, the next step of a plan voted by church officials last year to focus on urban area ministry worldwide.
During the opening of Spring Meeting – one of two annual meetings of the global Executive Committee – leaders stated plans for renewed outreach in a mega city in each of the denomination’s 13 world divisions. Some divisions identified several cities.
Dr Bertil Wiklander, president of the Trans-European Division (TED) expressed the commitment of the division to focus on the urban ministry: “In the TED we are committed to be engaged in a long term outreach process in order to reach the cities within our Division. London was chosen in cooperation with the British Union Conference as the city to start this initiative. By the God’s grace, we believe that we will be able to make thousands of disciples of Jesus Christ using all our resources and human potentials.”
Pastor Janos Kovac-Biro, evangelism director at the TED who is in charge of this initiative shared the plans and the first steps which will be taken in implementing this programme: “From September 2012 all the TED departmental leaders will join forces together with the British Union leaders and pastors serving in London to mobilise the existing church membership to effectively reach out in the most relevant way for their neighbours. In the autumn of 2013 all the representatives of the TED Unions and Fields will be coming to London for a field school of outreach and be part of the diverse evangelistic process planned for London. After the training they will share the experiences and methods of work with their fellow workers in their home country. The spiritual work in Europe is complex and needs continuous connection with God and careful preparation”, concluded Kovacs-Biro.
E G White saw the importance of working in the capital of United Kingdom: “London has been presented to me again and again as a place in which a great work is to be done… God wants His people to work. To every man – and that means every woman, also – He has given His work, and this work each one is to perform according to his several ability.” (GC Bulletin, April 22, 1901, p. 396).
The worldwide urban ministry focus will start next year in New York City, with a representative from each division attending part of the four-week initial outreach.
“It’s not just an event, it’s God’s comprehensive plan for reaching big cities,” said Adventist Church president pastor Ted N. C. Wilson. “New York will be a symbolic launch.”
Meeting at the church’s world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, leaders reminded Spring Meeting delegates of the world’s changing demographics, which led to the voted plan last year. “For the first time in history, more than 50 percent of the world’s population live in cities,” said pastor Mark Finley, an assistant to the president. “About 70,000 people every day move from rural areas into cities.” [tedNEWS]
tedNEWS Staff: Miroslav Pujic, director; Deana Stojkovic, editor
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